Zuckerberg denies WhatsApp, Facebook merger claims
Following his acquisition of free messaging service, WhatsApp, Facebook CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, has refuted claims that Facebook and WhatsApp would be merged over time. He, however, said that he plans to continue growing the community which currently stands at five billion users every month.
Speaking at a Town Hall session with Nigerian developers and software engineers which was held in Lagos on Wednesday, Zuckerberg said that as much as five billion was, it only amounted to one-fifth of the actual audience to be reached. “Five billion users a month – that sounds big but that just amounts to 20 percent of the actual opportunity to be tapped,” he said.
On August 25, Facebook announced that WhatsApp was going to begin to make money by allowing businesses to message its users.
The next day, WhatsApp announced a change to its privacy policy that allows businesses to communicate with users. The company said in its revised terms of service, that messages could include appointment reminders, delivery and shipping notifications or marketing material.
In addition to the messages from businesses, WhatsApp said it would begin sharing more information about its users with the ‘Facebook family’. The data, including a person’s phone number, could be used to better target ads when browsing Facebook or Instagram.
Sometime in 2014, Zuckerberg, agreed to pay $19 billion for the popular app.
“Now, people can connect to businesses on WhatsApp. It even helps businesses keep track of those subscribed to WhatsApp,” he explained.
Zuckerberg said: “The idea is to have each platform play on their strength. WhatsApp is a text message alternative. It makes texting more fun and exciting because you can send pictures, videos and create groups with those you would ordinarily send only text messages. However, with Facebook messenger, you can only chat with your Facebook friends so the platforms serve two different purposes.”
Furthermore, the Facebook boss added that the social media platform has played a major role in growing many small businesses, noting that over 60 million businesses have pages all over the world. “We are giving startups the same tools that in the past only big companies could afford. Now, small businesses have free access to tools that would otherwise cost money.”
Recalling that Facebook started out with a running cost at just $89 per month, Zuckerberg said that it has evolved so much over the last 12 years from a community of college students to that of people across the world; from just text to pictures, videos and news feeds.
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